TOPIC:

In my small collection I have a Transport Medal clasp South Africa 1899-1902 named to A.Livingston in Command. According to the roll on this forum he was captain of the SS.Hilarius-a British and South American ship. My problem is on putting hilarious into google it is very hard to convince it that it is not an imput error. I bought the medal here locally(South Australia) in an auction and it came with a Defence Medal that is engraved to him. He was born in 1863 in Cumlodden Argyle the son of the local bread carter. In WW1 he was awarded the Mercantile Marine and War medal (these I don't have and look at every one that turns up on a list in hope). During his career at sea he completed Certificates of Competency as Only Mate, a Masters Certificate and an Extra Masters Certificate which I am led to believe was a navigation qualification. In 1915 he was the Captain of the Anglo-Californian the same horse transport that Frederick D. Paslow would be awarded a Victoria Cross

ADM171 really cannot be any clearer on this, Livingston was Master of the Hilarius and in the employ of the British and South American Steam Navigation Company, his medal and clasp was sent to him on the 23rd of January 1904.
His service in the Great War, will, from memory, be shown in BT351.

George
I would never presume to give anyone hints about anything on-line; not being the sharpest knife in the drawer in that regard!
However, I did enter HILARIUS steamship on a certain search engine and found that such a ship was indeed constructed in the UK in 1894 (3355 grt) and plied the oceans (romantic term) between 1900 and 1919 with the British and South American Steam Navigation Co (a part of the Houston Line). Operating probably from Argentina, it may have been involved in the shipping of Horses to South Africa. That last is only a guess on my part.
Good luck with your searches.
IL.

George,

That's a nice medal to have, especially with him being in command.

There were 7 medals awarded to Hilarius.

I have been trying to find a picture of the ship but no luck so far.

Kind regards
David

The Anglo-Californian which I mentioned above was owned by Nitrate Producers SS.Co Ltd (Lawther, Latta & Co) London-not only was it attacked by U39 on the 4th of July 1915 in the VC action but in 1916 it was sold to the Cunard Steamship Co Ltd., Liverpool, renamed Vandalia, and torpedoed and sunk by U 96 on 9th June 1918. The Hilarius also had a sticky end after surviving WW1 it was sold and renamed SS Livanos and it ran aground and sunk in 1923 in the Strait of Bonifacio, I got this info of a shipwreck site on the internet www.wrecksite.eu/wreck.aspx?156169

Wretched Wagnerian pirates!

Georgegt351 wrote: The Anglo-Californian which I mentioned above was owned by Nitrate Producers SS.Co Ltd (Lawther, Latta & Co) London-not only was it attacked by U39 on the 4th of July 1915 in the VC action but in 1916 it was sold to the Cunard Steamship Co Ltd., Liverpool, renamed Vandalia, and torpedoed and sunk by U 96 on 9th June 1918. The Hilarius also had a sticky end after surviving WW1 it was sold and renamed SS Livanos and it ran aground and sunk in 1923 in the Strait of Bonifacio, I got this info of a shipwreck site on the internet www.wrecksite.eu/wreck.aspx?156169